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Published: July 17th 2010
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June 24th
The morning smelled of victory and the evidence was everywhere to be seen. Americans littered the hostel once again, remnants of face paint were left on our faces as we talked about the game over breakfast. The energy that morning was really special and optimism was at a high, everyone was thinking we could make it to the semi finals of the World Cup.
After starting out the day I met up with Trevor to venture into Pretoria and buy some essentials for the trip. I planned on buying a tent because the cost of South African dorm rooms were getting ridiculous, $50 for a dorm bed is insane and despicable if you ask me. So we headed for Hatfield and another area called Brooklyn, walking a total of close to 10 kilometers to find a Game department store. I almost didn’t buy the tent after finding one but in the end I splurged and spent 250 rands ($30 dollars or so) for a decent tent.
We ended up saving our feet from the ravages of walking and we got a minibus taxi back to the hostel. I set up the tent straight away and was
impressed how nice it was for $30, even though I do have to sleep in it diagonally!
The rest of the day was a lot of relaxation at the campsite. We watched Spaniards and Chileans arrive group by group, in preparation for the match the next day. I met a nice couple from Santiago, Kurt and Maureen and we chatted for a bit before I headed for bed and another day in a World Cup city.
June 25th
By the time I woke up in the morning the whole campsite had filled with more fans and tents. I sat around chatting with the fans about the match while drinking tea and debating who would win. Maureen and Kurt’s friends showed up a few hours before the Portugal and Brazil match kicked off. We headed for Hatfield Plaza to watch the match, there were tons of fans there waiting for the ref to blow his whistle. Spanish and Chileans were everywhere waiting for the 8:30 kick off, beers were drank but unfortunately no goals were scored. The Chileans were a bit worried because if they were to lose to Spain then they would have to play their Latin
American counter parts in the round of 16, (and they haven’t beaten the Brasileiros in many many matches).
After the Hatfield Plaza mayhem the group headed for the stadium, a short walk away. On the way I was trying to find someone to sell me a ticket but I had no luck. After the Chileans went through the turnstiles I sat outside the stadium (it was an hour until kick off) and tried getting a ticket but I had no luck. I wandered back up to Hatfield to get a Lebanese doner kebab and watch the first half of the Spain/Chile match. After the first half I meandered back to the hostel and campsite, walking by the stadium as the fans cheered on their nations.
The rest of the night wasn’t very entertaining, I rendezvoused with Maureen and Kurt after the match but their spirits were quite low as the Chileans had lost to Spain and faced a match against Brazil in the next round. We had a couple cups of tea while discussing the match and then I took down my tent and packed my things up as my flight back to Cape Town was later that
night, or morning I should say, 3am!
I waited around the hostel until 1am when the taxi came and picked me up to take me 60 kilometers away to Lanseria airport. Fifty dollars and an hour later I was at the airport checking into my flight when I realized…oh yea, the Pretoria Backpackers has my passport…GREAT.
To be continued…
Hope you enjoyed the photos and post!
Until next time, Pura Vida!
-Brendan
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Kurt heyer
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Hola
Exelente reporte compadre un abrazo Kurt